Well said Eric! When is it going to be removed from TCM airings
Several quick capsules...
TUFF TURF (1985)
7/10
James Spader found himself essaying a pair of contrasting roles in two different youth thrillers, both released in 1985. In “The New Kids” -- “Friday the 13th” auteur Sean S. Cunningham’s R-rated answer to the rise of the John Hughes generation – Spader played the icy villain “Dutra,” separated by quite a far distance from his lead role in “Tuff Turf,” an even more entertaining high-school thriller. Portraying a feisty Connecticut teen who moves to L.A. with his family and promptly runs afoul of the local gang of bullies – as well as the leader’s soon-to-be conflicted girlfriend (ex-Disney moppet Kim Richards) – Spader’s character is far less a milquetoast than the usual heroes we find in comparable genre exercises. Turning the tables on the bad guys, Spader charms the troubled Richards while befriending an equally young Robert Downey, Jr.
“Tuff Turf” isn’t exactly “Class of 1984” or “Savage Streets” – despite the R-rating, this New World release is more along the lines of a sexier, more violent Afterschool Special. It also just misses being something truly special, being just competent enough to miss the “so bad it’s good” thrills of the latter and the more adult, trashy amusement of the former. Yet before director Fritz Kiersch stages a mundane climax, “Tuff Turf” offers plenty of entertainment just the same along with a strong Spader performance that’s worth seeing by itself.
Kino Lorber’s superb Blu-Ray of this New World production includes a fresh 2K restored transfer (1.85), DTS MA mono sound, the trailer and a commentary from Kiersch, who also helmed “Children of the Corn” for New World before his career stalled out.
HOTEL MUMBAI (2019)
8/10
Compelling, at times horrifying dramatization of the terrorist attack on India’s Taj Hotel in 2008, where some 30 people died – half of them staff members who tried to save the guests. The lives of the innocent victims as well as the religious motivations of Islamic radicals are vividly chronicled in Australian director Anthony Maras’ film, which combines some characters for dramatic impact and ends up a film that keeps you glued to your seat, in at-times (understandably) uncomfortable ways. Dev Patel and Armie Hammer are both standouts in a uniformly fine cast, and all of it is superbly, believably rendered in one of the year’s best films. Universal’s Blu-Ray combo pack of the Bleecker Street release includes a 1080p (2.40) transfer, 5.1 DTS MA sound, a DVD, Digital HD copy and several featurettes.
CAPTIVE STATE (2018)
5/10
This Amblin/Participant Media co-production has an interesting enough concept – what the world would be like a few years removed from an extraterrestrial takeover – but its agenda can quickly be seen when its opening text crawl tells us “the gap between rich and poor has never been greater” and “deportations are now taking place – off-planet.” Yes, director Rupert Wyatt’s thriller, set in a dystopian future Chicago, is really just a thinly veiled Hollywood commentary on what happened in 2016, just with cactus-adorned creatures showing up every now and then to remind you that you’re watching a movie and not CNN. John Goodman fares well as a frustrated cop with Vera Farmiga as his wife – a former teacher turned futuristic Stormy Daniels. “Captive State” opens solidly and ends with a satisfying enough twist, but it’s unfortunate the rest of it is so slow-going and intermittently preachy. Universal’s Blu-Ray of this scarcely-released picture includes a 1080p (2.35) transfer, 5.1 DTS MA sound, commentary with Wyatt and co-writer Erica Beeney, two featurettes and a Digital HD copy.